EXAMPLE 13 A Problem with the 1822 Congressional Apportionment

The 1820 census reported that New York had an apportionment population of 1,368,775. The total apportionment population of the United States was 8,969,878. Using the divisor , a total of 213 seats were apportioned by the Jefferson method. With the 213 as the house size, the standard divisor was . New York’s quota was . The Hamilton method, with 213 seats in the House, would have apportioned to New York its upper quota, 33 seats. However, New York’s apportionment quotient was . The Jefferson method rounded the apportionment quotient down and apportioned 34 seats to New York, one more than New York’s upper quota.